Fenugreek (/ˈfɛnjʊɡriːk/; Trigonella foenum-graecum) is an annual plant in the family Fabaceae, with leaves consisting of three small obovate to oblong leaflets. It is cultivated worldwide as a semiarid crop. Its seeds and leaves are common ingredients in dishes from South and Central Asia.

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History

Fenugreek is believed to have been brought into cultivation in the Near East. While Zohary and Hopf[who?] are uncertain which wild strain of the genus Trigonella gave rise to domesticated fenugreek, charred fenugreek seeds have been recovered from Tell Halal, Iraq (carbon dated to 4000 BC), and Bronze Age levels of Lachish and desiccated seeds from the tomb of Tutankhamen.[2]Cato the Elder lists fenugreek with clover and vetch as crops grown to feed cattle.[3]

In one first-century A.D. recipe, the Romans flavoured wine with fenugreek.[4] In the 1st century AD, in Galilee, it was grown as a food staple, as Josephus mentions it in his book, the Wars of the Jews.[5]

Etymology

The English name derives via Middle French fenugrec from Latinfaenugraecum, faenum Graecum meaning "Greek hay".[6]

Fresh fenugreek leaves are an ingredient in some curries, such as with potatoes in cuisines of the Indian subcontinent to make "aloo methi" ("potato fenugreek") curry.[9] Sprouted seeds and fenugreek greens are used in salads. When harvested as greens, fenugreek is known as samudra methi in Maharashtra, especially in and around Mumbai, where it is often grown in sandy tracts near the sea, hence the name samudra, "ocean" in Sanskrit. Samudra methi is also grown in dry river beds in the Gangetic plains. When sold as a vegetable, the young plants are harvested with their roots still attached and sold in small bundles in the markets and bazaars. Any remaining soil is washed off to extend their shelf life.

In Turkish cuisine, fenugreek seeds are used for making a paste known as çemen. Cumin, black pepper, and other spices are added into it, especially to make pastırma. In Persian cuisine, fenugreek leaves are called shanbalile. They are the key ingredient and one of several greens incorporated into ghormeh sabzi and eshkeneh as common Iranian dishes.

Yemenite Jews following the interpretation of Rabbi Shelomo Yitzchak (Rashi) believe fenugreek, which they call hilbeh, hilba, helba, or halba "חילבה", to be the Talmudic rubia "רוביא". When the seed kernels are ground and mixed with water they greatly expand; hot spices, turmeric and lemon juice are added to produce a frothy relish eaten with a sop. The relish is also called hilbeh;[11] it is reminiscent of curry. It is eaten daily and ceremonially during the meal of the first and/or second night of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana.[12]

Safety

Fenugreek sprouts, cultivated from a single specific batch of seeds imported from Egypt into Germany in 2009, were implicated as the source of the 2011 outbreak of Escherichia coli O104:H4 in Germany and France.[13] Identification of a common producer and a single batch of fenugreek seeds supports the epidemiologic evidence implicating them as the source of the outbreaks.[14]

It causes birth defects in animals and there are reports that it also causes birth defects in humans, and that it can pass through the placenta; it also appears to negatively affect male fertility, female fertility, and the viability of embryos in animals and humans.[15]

Research

A 2016 meta-analysis combining the results of 12 small studies, of which only three were high quality, found that fenugreek may reduce some biomarkers in people with diabetes and with pre-diabetic conditions, but that better quality research would be required in order to draw conclusions.[20] As of 2016, there was no high-quality evidence for whether fenugreek is safe and effective to relieve dysmenorrhea.[21]

^Josephus, De Bello Judaico, book 3, chapter 7, vs. 29. The prepared relish made from ground fenugreek seeds is very slimy and slippery, and was therefore poured over ladders as a stratagem to prevent the enemy's ascent.

^This is based on the assumption that the Aramaic name רוביא corresponds to it. (Karetot 6a; Horiyot 12a) Rabbenu Nissim at the end of Rosh Hashana, citing the custom of R Hai Gaon. This follows Rashi's translation of רוביא, cited as authoritative by Tur and Shulchan Aruch OC 583:1. But Abudirham interprets רוביא as black-eyed peas.